The invention relates to an improved coupling, specifically a simple, genderless device to provide mechanical, electrical or optical connection between two components without the need for separate and dissimilar male and female connectors.
Devices to connect two components, either mechanically, electrically, optically or all three exist in numerous varieties. These connecting devices can be broadly divided into two categories: gendered and genderless.
Gendered couplings consist of two dissimilar but complementary connectors that fit together to create a continuous, connected signal or structural pathway to provide mechanical connection or to support transmission of power or data signals, including digital, analog, optical and electrical. Gendered couplings take the form of male and female connectors, where a first probe mates with a corresponding receptacle. Examples of gendered couplings include USB connectors, RCA audio jacks, Ethernet jacks, and power plugs, among many others. By virtue of their design, gendered couplings require dissimilar connectors and frequently, connection in a specific orientation. A well-known connector for power cables is the standard plug and receptacle. When stringing together such items as decorative Christmas lights or connecting multiple extension cords, it is always necessary to arrange the cords in a manner that ensures a male plug is adjacent a female receptacle. In some configurations, gendered connectors require specialized adapters, such as to join two functionally equivalent cables together. For example, telephone extension cords are well-known as having gendered plugs, but having the same gender on both ends of a cable. Consequently, an additional adapter having the complementary gender on both ends is required to connect such cables to gain greater length. Another type of gendered coupling is used to provide mechanical connection of toy trains using magnetic attraction. Although the connectors on the end of each train appear visually to be genderless, in fact, each will only engage if a positive magnetic pole is placed adjacent a negative magnetic pole. Consequently, such connectors are functionally gendered.
Genderless, or hermaphroditic, couplings typically have one connector type designed to engage with an equivalent connector in a complementary fashion. Since each connector is identical, there is no need for specialized adapters when connecting identical genders together. An example of a well-known hermaphroditic connector is the “handshake” devices on rail cars that enable any rail car to mechanically link to any other car in any order. Current hermaphroditic connectors are complex and expensive to produce. Further, actual engagement of opposing hermaphroditic connectors can likewise be difficult. Still further, many such connectors engage in a linear fashion causing electrical connections to be made simultaneously on all contacts creating potential short-circuits and safety hazards. Additionally, many such hermaphroditic connectors require relatively long shells to house the components used to mechanically engage respective connectors. Without special complex adaptation, many gendered and genderless connectors are easily separated, creating inconvenient disconnects. Further, existing hermaphroditic connectors cannot be easily or cost-effectively scaled or modified to accommodate varying power and signal pathways.
Information relevant to attempts to address these problems can be found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,605,914B1 and 6,881,084B2. However, each one of these references suffers from one or more of the following disadvantages: long housings, complex configuration, expensive construction, poor contact tolerance, potentially unsafe contact action, and, lack of resistance to linear separation.
For the foregoing reasons, there is a need for a novel hermaphroditic coupling that is low cost, comprised of few components, easily assembled, safe in operation, capable of providing close tolerance engagement, structurally robust, resistant to rotational, lateral or linear disengagement, scalable to accommodate increasing numbers of connection pathways, and, easily modifiable to deliver various connection contact configurations.